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Our #1 Holiday Shopping Pick: Rock Band 2

Why Rock Band 2?
• 84 new tracks on disc, 20 free downloadable songs, and all Rock Band titles
• Wireless guitar, wireless drum set, and a microphone
• Virtual bands: up to 4 players with ability to play 3 different peripherals (guitar, drum, and microphone)
• Drum trainer mode
• Battle of the Bands mode
• World Tour mode, including online capabilities
• Merchandising opportunities for virtual bands
• Won the Spike 2008 Video Game "Best Music Game Award’

Rock Band 2 provides all the necessary equipment and songs to make you feel like a rock star. Whether you still have all your equipment from the previous version (Rock Band) or you purchased the special edition—Rock Band 2 offers new songs and game modes. With 84 new tracks and better game play, Rock Band 2 is a much better and improved version of its predecessor.
Rock Band 2 Special Edition comes with a wireless guitar, wireless drum set, and a microphone. (You will need another guitar to have a full band experience to either play the guitar or bass.) The setup of the band equipment is simple (just remember to change the AA batteries after hours of playing). Before, each piece of equipment was wired to your USB ports

The first thing you will notice is the wireless setup (it was wired using USB ports). The wireless drums and guitar make it easy and fun to rock out. You can now swing your guitar around your body without choking yourself to death. The wireless guitar is modeled after a Fender electric guitar and the strumming tab is a lot looser for easier and faster strums—much better for hard and expert songs. The drums have been redesigned for a quieter experience. The pedal is reinforced with metal to make it stronger. The previous pedal was made from plastic and felt flimsy and cheap. The microphone is the only wired part of the getup, and is basically the same mic as before.

The game comes packed with over 80 songs and as a bonus you can transfer all the songs from the original Rock Band to Rock Band 2 for a low fee of 400 Miscrosoft Xbox Live points. Note: you will need Xbox Live and an Internet connection to the Xbox. If you have enough MS Xbox Live points you can purchase more songs on Xbox Live (depending on the song or album these range from 80 to 1600 MS points).

Here are a few of the bands and songs you will find on Rock Band 2:
AC/DC "Let There Be Rock"
Bob Dylan "Tangled Up In Blue"
Billy Idol "White Wedding"
Metallica "Battery"
Modest Mouse "Float On"
Silversun Pickups "Lazy Eye" and a whole lot more

Rock Band 2, the game, is probably the best group or party game available to any system. The game is simply addicting. Anyone can pick up an instrument and start playing, the learning curve is easy. The game has 4 difficulty levels: easy, medium, hard, and expert. Easy and medium are fairly easy to pick up; if you want a real challenge choose hard or expert and try to survive an entire song. The game also has a tutorial mode for those who are new or just having a hard time adapting to the game. The tutorial mode is easy to follow.

World Tour Mode allows you to create a custom character. Then you choose a region in the world to tour. In this game mode you choose a country within your region and you choose a venue to jam to, usually playing a challenge that is a set list or a mystery set list. After you accomplish a challenge you will be rewarded with cash, fans, songs, and a new venue. New venue’s open up new challenges for new songs. Cash allows you to go to the rock shop to buy new clothing, accessories, and skins for your instruments. The more fans, the better your reputation gets, and you can hire a better manager.

The presentation of the game has also improved; it has better scenes and focuses on more than just the lead singer. The band stages have also been updated with a dozen or more new looks.
The game play is the same game play we loved from the first one. Not much has changed and that’s a good thing. The only changes I notice are the controls felt a lot tighter and the drums are more sensitive than before. The Xbox Live option is a great way to show off your skills on the online community or to connect with a few friends and jam out. You can battle each other or form a band online. Try out the new Battle of the Bands to test your band skills against the online world and see where you rank.

Check out www.rockband.com to watch a demo on how to make your own Rock Band t-shirts, stickers, and figurines!

Overall, Rock Band 2 is a must buy for music and game enthusiasts. Even if you are not a gamer, this game is easy to play. For everyone who has ever dreamt of being a rock star Rock Band 2 fills our #1 spot for holiday gift ideas.